Past the Clouds
by Dani-Ellie03
Summary: The waiting was agony and no matter how many times they waited this exact same three minutes, it never got any easier. Emma had lost count of the number of times they'd sat here, anxiously perched on the edge of their mattress while waiting for a little stick to determine their future. (or, Captain Swan and new beginnings)


**Title:** Past the Clouds  
 **Summary:** The waiting was _agony_ and no matter how many times they waited this exact same three minutes, it never got any easier _._ Emma had lost count of the number of times they'd sat here, anxiously perched on the edge of their mattress while waiting for a little stick to determine their future.  
 **Spoilers:** If you're current, we're good.  
 **Rating/Warning:** K+. Marshmallow fluff here, ladies and gents.  
 **Disclaimer:** _Once Upon a Time_ and its characters were created by Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz and are owned by ABC. I'm just borrowing them but I'll put them back when I'm finished!  
 **Author's Note:** Who else misses these two? I know I certainly do! I don't quite know where this idea came from but once I had it, I couldn't not write it out. Feedback makes my little day! Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Are you all right, love?" Killian Jones asked, pure concern tinging his tone.

Emma made a face. Her stomach had soured three minutes into their sail. The bright midday sun beating down on her head didn't help matters, either. She was hot and she was tired and to be perfectly honest, she wanted nothing more than to disappear below decks, curl up on the captain's bunk, and not move until her stomach settled.

Not that she told Killian any of that. Instead, she forced a smile and said, "Yeah, I'm fine."

Going by his perfunctory nod, he didn't believe her at all. Thankfully, though, he didn't press the issue.

Emma let out a soft breath and tried to focus on the horizon. From the moment she woke up that morning, she had felt … off. It was nothing she could really put her finger on; she just felt out of sorts. A little tired, a little uncomfortable. No real appetite.

She'd only picked at her breakfast, which had put Killian on high alert. Before he could say a word, however, she'd assured him that she would more than likely be starving by lunchtime. "And you know our lunch today is going to be special," she'd reminded him.

This special lunch of theirs was a good seven days in the making. Storybrooke may have had two sheriffs but both sheriffs taking the same day off did not come easy. Getting David on board to cover their shift had been relatively easy – daughter and son-in-law perk – but it had taken a little begging and offering some per diem pay to get Leroy to agree to be on call in case David needed backup.

And now, for the first time in ages, Emma and Killian were free to head out on the _Jolly Roger_ for the day with takeout from Granny's providing them a picnic at sea. After all it had taken to get them here, Emma was not going to let her malaise ruin this trip. So she'd downplayed her symptoms and was now trying to make the most of it.

Trying but not exactly succeeding, apparently. Killian's soft voice drew her from her reverie. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"Yeah," she replied, squinting against the bright sunlight as she turned to look up at her husband. "Why do you ask?"

"You're quiet." He appraised her with a worried frown. "You're also a little pale."

"Sorry. I don't think I slept well last night. I'm just tired."

"We can turn back–"

"No, I'm okay. We don't have to turn back."

Though he still didn't believe her, Killian maintained heading. "You want to lie down for a bit until we drop anchor?"

Actually, that sounded really nice but agreeing would mean admitting she didn't feel well. "Killian, I'm really okay. I don't need to lie down."

After silently debating whether or not to continue pushing, he nodded and gave her a little smile. "Of course, love."

The next fifteen minutes passed without incident. Emma stood at the helm with her husband, his hand covering hers on the wheel. He'd taught her how to sail years ago just like this, with his hand over hers so she could feel the pull of the current on the rudder through the vibrations on the wheel. Even though she could mostly sail on her own now, they still stood as if it were that first day on the water, her back pressed against his chest and his hand gripping hers.

Though the sun was hot, the wind coming off the water was brisk, for which Emma was grateful. She was feeling a little flush from the heat and the breeze helped cool her down. The sun seemed awfully bright, the rays glinting off the tiny cresting waves like diamonds catching the light. Tired of squinting, she shifted the sunglasses perched on the top of her head down to cover her eyes.

Finally Killian dropped anchor and let the _Jolly Roger_ bob in the gentle current. Almost instantly, Emma's stomach clenched again. She fought her gag reflex and hoped to hell that Killian hadn't seen.

He hadn't. "Where would you like to set up our picnic, love? I know we usually eat at the table in my cabin but it's a beautiful day. I was thinking we could set the blanket out on the deck."

Emma smiled. "That sounds nice. We haven't had a picnic on the deck in ages."

Killian returned her smile before ducking through the hatch to retrieve their takeout. He climbed back up the ladder a moment later bearing the bag and the picnic blanket. Emma spread the blanket out on the deck while Killian set out their meal.

They had learned long ago that they did not have to stick to cold sandwiches and potato chips on these picnics. Emma could reheat pretty much any food with her magic. Today's lunch consisted of chicken fingers and French fries for Killian and Emma's typical grilled cheese and onion rings. Granny had even included a couple of cups of ranch dressing for dipping.

Emma concentrated her magic and held her hand over the meals. Killian's reheated just fine but as she heated hers, the heavy aroma of the fried onions completely turned her stomach. When her mouth started to water, she knew she was in trouble. "Oh no," she choked, scrambling to her feet.

She dashed to the rail and managed to lean over it just in time. Killian was at her side in less than a second, gathering her hair and holding it behind her back. He didn't say a word, settling for gently running the side of his hook over her back to give as much comfort as he could.

When she was sure she was done, she stood up straight and looked up at her husband apologetically. "I'm sailing us back to town," Killian informed her, his tone brooking no dissent.

Not that she couldn't try. "No, you don't have to–"

"Yes, I do. Emma, you haven't been seasick in ages and you've been off all morning. Something's wrong and we're going home."

"I'm not seasick, it was just …"

She trailed off when it hit her. _It was the onions_ , she thought, her eyes widening. She'd gotten sick when she smelled the onions. A long-buried memory pushed its way to the surface just then, the only other time in her life the smell of onions had turned her stomach.

"Emma? What's wrong?"

"Yeah, all right, sail us back to the harbor. I'm okay, I promise, but we need to go home."

* * *

On the way back to Storybrooke, after Killian had made her lie down below decks, Emma had told him what she believed was happening. "I … I don't want to get your hopes up," she'd hedged, "but– "

"Understood, love," he'd said. "You just rest." And after dropping a kiss on the top of her head, he'd headed back up on deck to sail them back to Storybrooke.

Once home, Emma had freshened up and done her thing. And now here they sat, waiting for the longest three minutes of their lives to pass. The waiting was _agony_ and no matter how many times they waited this exact same three minutes, it never got any easier _._ Emma had lost count of the number of times they'd sat here, anxiously perched on the edge of their mattress while waiting for a little stick to determine their future.

Killian slipped his trembling hand into Emma's and entwined their fingers together. "Whatever the test shows, just know I love you," he murmured before pressing a kiss to her temple.

A smile tugged at Emma's lips. Each and every time they'd sat here waiting this same wait, he'd said that exact same thing. "I love you, too," she replied as she always did, squeezing his hand.

As disappointed as she was every time the test failed to give them the answer they wanted, Killian was even more so. The sparkle in his eyes dimmed just a little bit with each negative result. After all these years of negatives, they both had begun preparing themselves for the likely reality that this dream of theirs simply was not meant to be.

Maybe, just maybe, today would prove them wrong.

After a hundred and eighty long, agonizing seconds, the alarm on Emma's phone indicated that their wait was finally over. Emma once again squeezed her husband's hand. He squeezed back and as one, they stood to check the result.

And even though on some level she'd known what the result would be, Emma still couldn't believe what she saw. After all the months and years of seeing a minus sign in the little pregnancy test window, this time a big blue plus sign smiled up at them.

"Is that ..." Killian stuttered. "Does that mean ..."

"Yes," Emma murmured in reply, her hand gravitating towards her stomach. "Yes, it does."

"We're … we're having a baby?" he asked. At Emma's stunned nod, a wide grin split Killan's face. He swept her into his arms and kissed her hard. "We're having a baby!"

Wrapping her arms around him and blinking back tears of joy, Emma kissed him back. It had finally happened! After the months and years of trying and waiting and hoping, they were going to have a baby. A little pirate prince or princess of their very own.

After holding her in the hug for a long moment, Killian let go and stared at her in awe. "On the _Jolly Roger_ … you knew."

Emma nodded, a grin tugging at her own lips. She _had_ known. Now all her earlier symptoms made sense: she'd felt their baby from the moment she woke up this morning.

"How did you know?"

She could have claimed maternal instinct. She could have claimed magic. Instead, she told him exactly what had made her understand that she wasn't simply seasick or coming down with something. "The onions," Emma chuckled as she sniffed back her happy tears. "When I was pregnant with Henry, I couldn't stomach the smell of onions."

A laughing Killian pulled her into another embrace. "I'm sorry if this means you won't be able to have onion rings for the next little while."

"It does," Emma smiled, resting her chin on his shoulder, "but it'll be completely worth it."

Killian's soft voice filled her ear. "I love you, Emma."

"I love you, too, Killian." Oh, how very much she loved him.

This time when Killian let her go, he pressed his hand to her stomach. A smiling Emma placed her hand on top of his. "And we both love you, little love," Killian murmured to their baby. "More than you will ever know."


End file.
